United Arab Emirates Laws

A religious court has sentenced a Lebanese Christian to a year in jail and 39 lashes for marrying a Muslim woman, Amnesty International says. The London-based human rights group said Elie Dib Ghalib has been tortured since his arrest in December. On Oct. 29, a religious court ruled that the marriage between Ghalib and Mona Junaidi, a UAE citizen, was void and the marital relationship immoral. The couple married in Lebanon in June 1995.

A religious court has sentenced a Lebanese Christian to a year in jail and 39 lashes for marrying a Muslim woman, Amnesty International says. The London-based human rights group said Elie Dib Ghalib has been tortured since his arrest in December. On Oct. 29, a religious court ruled that the marriage between Ghalib and Mona Junaidi, a UAE citizen, was void and the marital relationship immoral. The couple married in Lebanon in June 1995.

Although it may seem odd to Western fans of Mary Poppins, Persian Gulf social experts want governments to curb the number of foreign nannies because they are seen as a dangerous influence on the young. They say employment of non-Arabs to raise children is one reason behind a "cultural invasion and gradual erosion of Islamic values." Unofficial estimates say there are about 1.5 million foreign maids and nannies in the Persian Gulf region--one to every 10 people.